Machine for washing and drying laundry

ABSTRACT

A front-loading laundry washing and drying machine. The machine has a cabinet with a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls and an upper wall. The cabinet also houses an oscillating assembly that comprises a treatment tub, which has a substantially horizontal longitudinal axis. The machine also has a drying circuit made up of a heat pump inside the cabinet. The heat pump includes an evaporator device, a condenser device, a compressor, and a fan for forcing a flow of air through the evaporator device and the condenser device. The evaporator device and the condenser device are housed inside the cabinet above the treatment tub. The evaporator device and the condenser device each have a heat exchanger with a body configured for being traversed by the forced flow of air. The heat exchanger of the evaporator device and the condenser device is set inside the cabinet in a lateral area (S) that is located between a first side wall of the cabinet and a median vertical plane of the treatment tub that contains the corresponding longitudinal axis. The heat exchanger of the at least one of the evaporator device and the condenser device are set in the aforesaid lateral area according to a plane of lie on an incline with respect to a horizontal plane.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from International Application No.PCT/IB2016/052291, filed Apr. 22, 2016, which claims priority fromEuropean Application No. 151657939, filed Apr. 29, 2015, both of whichare incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to household laundry washing and dryingmachines and has been developed with particular reference tofront-loading machines that have a drying circuit that comprises a heatpump.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Front-loading machines of the type referred to above typically have acabinet housed within which is an oscillating assembly. The oscillatingassembly comprises a treatment tub, rotatably mounted within which is adrum, designed to contain the laundry to be washed and dried. The axisof rotation of the drum, and hence of the oscillating assembly, may besubstantially horizontal (indicatively comprised between 0° and 15° withrespect to the horizontal), or else markedly inclined (indicativelyhigher than 15° with respect to the horizontal, for example with aninclination comprised between 30° and 40°).

The machines referred to moreover have a drying circuit, for generatingand conveying a forced flow of air and for heating the air of the forcedflow. In machines of the condensation type, the drying circuit issubstantially closed, i.e., configured for drawing in the moist air fromthe treatment tub and sending it back into the tub, after priordehumidification and heating: for this purpose, also provided along thecircuit is a device for causing condensation of the humidity present inthe air extracted from the tub.

In recent years, there has been a widespread use—chiefly for reasons ofenergy efficiency—of heat pumps in washer-dryers. Heat-pump machinesenvisage two substantially closed circuits: the first circuit is that ofthe drying air, whereas the second circuit is that of the cooling fluid,which passes into a compressor operatively set between an evaporator anda condenser. In operation, the temperature of the cooling fluidincreases following upon compression by the compressor. The coolingfluid is made to pass into a condenser, where it yields heat to the flowof air, which is thus heated. From the condenser, the cooling fluidfirst passes into a lamination valve, constituted, for example, by asimple capillary tube, which expands and cools the fluid, and then intoan evaporator, to return once more to the compressor. In this way, thecondenser of the heat pump performs the function of heating the dryingair, whereas the evaporator performs the function of condensation of thehumidity present in the air extracted from the tub. The condenser andthe evaporator hence generally comprise a respective coolingfluid-drying air heat exchanger.

In some known solutions, certain components of the heat pump, such asthe condenser and the evaporator, are mounted above the oscillatingassembly, i.e., above the treatment tub.

In the case of front-loading laundry-washing machines in which the axisof the oscillating assembly is markedly inclined, for example with aninclination greater than 30°, between the rear-upper portion of the tuband the upper wall of the cabinet it is possible to provide asignificant space for housing various components of the heat pump, suchas the condenser, the evaporator, and possibly also the compressor (see,for example, EP 2436818 A).

Instead, in the case of machines with horizontal or substantiallyhorizontal axis, positioning of components of the heat pump above thetub is more problematic. From EP 2270274 A there is known afront-loading laundry washer-dryer with a substantially horizontal axis,having a cabinet, the upper wall of which is configured as an equippedpanel, including two heat exchangers that make up one the condenser andthe other the evaporator of a heat pump. The heat exchangers are mountedhorizontally in a central position of the panel within a channel forpassage of the drying air, defined by the body of the panel itself. Thissolution is relatively complex, in view of the need to integrate theheat exchangers in the so-called “top” of the machine.

Also known from WO 2014/083503 A is a washer-dryer machine in which theheat exchangers that make up the condenser and the evaporator aremounted directly above the treatment tub, in a central position withrespect thereto. In this case, the heat exchanger of the condenser ismounted horizontal, whereas the heat exchanger of the evaporator ismounted slightly inclined. With this solution, the assembly integratingthe heat exchangers is potentially subject to impact with the upper wallof the cabinet, due to the vibrations of operation proper to theoscillating assembly of the machine, typically during spinning of theload of laundry, in particular in conditions of unbalanced load.

EP 2143839 A discloses a cloth dryer comprising a cabinet housing a tubhaving a substantially horizontal longitudinal axis, as well as a dryingcircuit including a heat-pump having an evaporator and a condenser in anair flow path. The heat exchanger of the condenser and the heatexchanger of the evaporator are integrated into one body, which isplaced within the air flow paths in a lower central region of thecabinet of the dryer, below the tub thereof

WO 2006/054431 A discloses a drum-type washer-dryer having an inclinedtub and a drying circuit including a heat pump with a condenser and anevaporator that are disposed in a heat exchange section of an aircirculation passage located below the tub.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

One aspect of the present disclosure is a front-loading laundry washingand drying machine. The front-loading laundry washing and drying machinehas a cabinet with a front wall, a rear wall, two side walls, and anupper wall. The cabinet also has a housing with an oscillating assemblythat comprises a treatment tub with a substantially horizontallongitudinal axis (A). The front-loading laundry washing and dryingmachine also has a drying circuit comprising a heat pump inside thecabinet. The heat pump includes an evaporator device, a condenserdevice, a compressor, and a fan for forcing a flow of air through theevaporator device and the condenser device. The evaporator device andthe condenser device are housed inside the cabinet above the treatmenttub. The evaporator device and the condenser device each have a heatexchanger with a body configured for being traversed by the forced flowof air. The body of each heat exchanger has an inlet end and an outletend opposite to one another, for the forced flow of air, and a firstlateral end and a second lateral end opposite to one another and settransversely with respect to the inlet end and outlet ends. The heatexchanger of at least one of the evaporator device and the condenserdevice are set inside the cabinet in a lateral area that is comprisedbetween a first side wall of the cabinet and a median vertical plane ofthe treatment tub that contains the corresponding longitudinal axis. Thefirst lateral end of the heat exchanger is closer to the aforesaidmedian vertical plane and the second lateral end is closer to theaforesaid first side wall. The heat exchanger of the at least one of theevaporator device and the condenser device are set in the aforesaidlateral area according to a plane of lie on an incline with respect to ahorizontal plane.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further purposes, characteristics, and advantages of the invention willemerge clearly from the ensuing detailed description, with reference tothe annexed drawings, which are provided purely by way of explanatoryand non-limiting example and in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view from the front side of a machineaccording to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view from the rear side of a machineaccording to one embodiment of the invention, with some elements of thecorresponding cabinet removed;

FIG. 3 is a partial and schematic perspective view of a treatment tub ofa machine according to one embodiment of the invention, with a heat-pumpassembly;

FIG. 4 is a partial and schematic rear elevation of the tub of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic top plan view of the tub of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a partial and schematic side elevation of the tub of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 7, 8, 9, and 10 are schematic views, respectively a perspectiveview, a top plan view, a front elevation, and a side elevation, of amachine according to one embodiment of the invention, with some internalcomponents of a heat-pump assembly highlighted;

FIGS. 11 and 12 are schematic perspective views, from different angles,of a treatment tub of a machine according to a further embodiment of theinvention, with a part of a heat-pump assembly;

FIGS. 13 and 14 are schematic views, respectively a perspective view anda front elevation, of a machine according to a further embodiment of theinvention, with just the heat exchangers of a heat-pump assemblyhighlighted;

FIGS. 15 and 16 are views similar to those of FIGS. 13 and 14 but regarda further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 17 is a view similar to that of FIG. 10, but regarding theembodiment of FIGS. 15-16, with just the heat exchangers highlighted;

FIG. 18 is a schematic perspective view from the rear side of the tubaccording to the embodiment of FIGS. 15-17, with just the heatexchangers of the heat-pump assembly highlighted; and

FIGS. 19, 20, and 21 are views similar to those of FIGS. 15, 16, and 17,respectively, but regarding a further embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference to “an embodiment” or “one embodiment” in the framework of thepresent description is intended to indicate that a particularconfiguration, structure, or characteristic described in relation to theembodiment is comprised in at least one embodiment. Hence, phrases suchas “in an embodiment” or “in one embodiment” and the like that may bepresent in various points of this description do not necessarily allrefer to one and the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particularconfigurations, structures, or characteristics may be combined in anyadequate way in one or more embodiments. The references used in whatfollows are provided merely for convenience and do not define the sphereof protection or the scope of the embodiments. In the figures, the samereferences are used to designate elements that are similar ortechnically equivalent.

It is pointed out that in the sequel of the present description, onlythe elements useful for an understanding of the invention will bedescribed in particular detail, it being taken for granted that themachine forming the subject of the invention comprises all the otherelements in themselves known for normal operation of a common machinedesigned for carrying out washing and drying operations.

With initial reference to FIG. 1, designated as a whole by 1 is afront-loading laundry washing and drying machine according to oneembodiment of the invention. The machine has a cabinet 2, comprising afront wall 3, where a door 4 is mounted, as well as two opposite sidewalls, one of which is designated by 5 a, an upper wall or top 6, and arear wall, not visible. Located preferentially in the upper area of thefront wall 3 is a drawer container 7 forming part of a dispenser ofwashing agents, as well as a control panel 8, both of a conception initself known.

Visible in FIG. 2, where the representation of the front wall 3 and ofthe upper wall 6 has been omitted, are both of the side walls 5 a and 5b, as well as the rear wall of the cabinet, designated by 9. Mountedinside the cabinet is an oscillating assembly 10, comprising a treatmenttub provided with a front opening, in a position corresponding to thedoor 4 of FIG. 1, a laundry drum being rotatably mounted in said tub.

Set at least partially inside the cabinet 2, above the oscillatingassembly 10, and hence above the aforesaid tub, is a heat-pump assembly,designated as a whole by 20. Preferentially, a casing body of theassembly 20, which may be seen in FIG. 2 and in the subsequent FIGS.3-6, is fixed to the cabinet 2, for example to the side walls 5 a, 5 band possibly to the rear wall 9, but not ruled out is the case of atleast part of the assembly 20 being fixed to the tub, or else both tothe tub and to the cabinet.

In various embodiments, and as highlighted in FIG. 2, mounted inside thecabinet 2, above the oscillating assembly, is a hopper-shaped container12, forming part of the dispenser of washing agents referred topreviously, which houses—preferably in a slidable way—the drawercontainer 7 of FIG. 1. In various embodiments (see FIG. 5) thehopper-shaped container 12 has a supply duct 12 a, preferably performingalso functions of air-break, bearing at its distal end one or moresolenoid valves 12 b for control of filling of the machine with water,for carrying out the washing cycles, and/or for cleaning possiblefilters present on the machine.

Highlighted moreover in FIG. 2 is a cross member, designated by 13,which connects the two side walls 5 a, 5 b together in order tostrengthen the structure of the cabinet 2 and/or prevent caving-in ofits top wall. In possible embodiments, the cross member 13 may beconveniently exploited also for local anchorage of the assembly 20.

In FIGS. 3-6, the treatment tub, designated by 14, is represented inisolation, together with the heat-pump assembly 20. In variousembodiments, the assembly 20 comprises a casing body, designated as awhole by 21, which is hollow in order to define a channel for a flow ofdrying air. Set inside said body 21, which may be conveniently formed ina number of box-shaped parts assembled together in a fluid-tight way,are some components of the assembly, in order to obtain with the samebody 21 an evaporator device 22, a condenser device 23 (which arereferred hereinafter for simplicity as “evaporator” and “condenser”),and a fan 24. The assembly 20 moreover comprises the other elementsnormally known for operation of a heat pump, such as a compressor 25, atleast one lamination valve or a capillary tube (not represented), andthe necessary control circuitry.

As will emerge clearly hereinafter, the casing body 21 houses at leastheat exchangers of the evaporator 22 and of the condenser 23, andpreferably also the impeller of the fan 24. The motor of the fan 24 maybe conveniently positioned on the outside of the casing body 21, in aposition isolated with respect to the flow of the drying air.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 3-6, the body 21 has a generallyL-shaped configuration, i.e., with a portion that extends longitudinallyalong a side wall 5 a of the cabinet 2, this portion including thecondenser 23 and the fan 24. A second portion of the body 21 extendstransversely, in a position corresponding to a rear-upper area of thetub 14, the evaporator 22 being included in this second portion.

In various embodiments, the casing body 21 defines, at its two ends,respective mouths for fluid connection with the inside of the tub 14. Inthe case exemplified, an end portion 22 a of the body 21 defines anattachment—not indicated—for the first end of a duct 26, here in theform of a bellows-type tube, the second end of which is connected to arespective opening provided in the tub 14. In one embodiment, theaforesaid opening is provided in the peripheral wall of the tub 2: suchan opening is, for example, designated by 14 a in FIGS. 8 and 10. In theexample illustrated, the air is therefore drawn in from the tub 14 in asingle flow through the opening 14 a, with the hollow portion 22 a ofthe body 21, upstream of the evaporator 22, which thus provides an inletportion of the body 21.

The opposite end portion of the body 21 defines, instead, an outletmouth 27 (FIGS. 3 and 6) that generally faces a front opening of the tub14 (such a front opening is, for example, designated by 14 b in FIG. 9).In various embodiments, the mouth 27 is connected in fluid communicationwith an annular conveying and air-tight member, of a conception initself known, which surrounds the opening 14 b and extends between thefront wall of the tub and the front wall 3 of the cabinet, at thecorresponding door.

In various embodiments, the casing body 21 has, in its rear part, ahollow portion 22 b, for fluid connection between the evaporator 22 andthe fan 24, in particular its intake branch. In a particularlyadvantageous embodiment, the body 21 defines a support 28 for thecompressor 25, with the latter that is preferably supported behind therear wall of the tub 14. Advantageously, the aforesaid support 28 can beobtained via a suitable shaping of the rear side of the connectionportion 22 b of the body 21.

In particular, from FIGS. 4 and 6 it may be noted how, in a particularlyadvantageous embodiment, the body portion 22 b is shaped so as tofacilitate off-flow of the water deriving from condensation of thehumidity of the drying air towards a discharge connector 22 c, definedin the lowest point of the duct inside the hollow portion 22 b itself.

In FIGS. 7-10, the tub 14 is represented in isolation, with just theheat exchangers that make up the evaporator 22 and the condenser 23, aswell as the impeller of the fan 24. Moreover highlighted in thesefigures is the longitudinal axis of the tub 14, designated by A, whichsubstantially corresponds to the axis of rotation of the correspondinglaundry drum. The machine 1 according to the invention is in fact amachine in which the axis A is horizontal or substantially horizontal,i.e., having an inclination comprised between 0° and 15°, with respectto a horizontal plane.

In the case exemplified, the evaporator includes a single heat exchanger122, whilst the condenser includes two distinct heat exchangers,designated by 123 a and 123 b, set one after the other along the channeldefined by the housing body. In various alternative embodiments, insteadof two heat exchangers, the condenser may comprise a single heatexchanger. The heat exchangers used for implementation of the inventionare preferentially selected from between finned-pack heat exchangers andmicro-channel heat exchangers: the heat exchangers of the second typereferred to guarantee greater efficiency and smaller overall dimensions.The impeller of the fan is designated by 124 in FIGS. 7-10. The fan ispreferentially a centrifugal one.

According to a technique in itself known, each heat exchanger has a bodyconfigured for being traversed by the flow of air forced by the impeller124 of the fan. Preferentially, the body of the heat exchangers has agenerally parallelepipedal or prismatic shape, with an inlet end and anoutlet end opposite to one another for the forced flow of air, as wellas two lateral ends opposite to one another and set transversely withrespect to the inlet end and the outlet end. With reference to theexample illustrated in FIG. 7, the white arrows indicate the directionfollowed by the flow of air, which traverses the heat exchangers fromthe corresponding inlet end to the corresponding outlet end.

It should be noted that in the attached figures the body of the heatexchangers—here represented as finned-pack heat exchangers—has beendeliberately represented schematically with a respective box-shapedcasing merely for reasons of clarity and to provide an intuitiverepresentation of their generally parallelepipedal or prismatic shape.In actual fact, the heat exchangers are formed by a series of finnedpacks or micro-channel batteries, assembled together so as to provide anoverall shape that is generally parallelepipedal or prismatic.

Operation of the heat pump is of a type in itself known, andconsequently will not be described in detail. In extreme synthesis, theimpeller 124 brings about intake of the flow of air from the tub 14(through the opening 14 a of FIGS. 8 and 10, the tube 26 of FIGS. 3-5,and the body portion 22 a of FIGS. 3 and 5). The air traverses the heatexchanger 122, to be dehumidified, and then travels, downstream of theimpeller 124 of the fan, through the heat exchangers 123 a and 123 b,thereby heating up. At outlet from the housing body, the dehumidifiedand heated air is re-directed towards the inside of the tub 14, via themouth 27 and the annular air-conveying and air-tight member alreadyreferred to, which surrounds the front opening 14 b of the tub 14.

According to the invention, at least one of the evaporator device 22 andthe condenser device 23 is set inside the cabinet 2 in a lateral areathat is comprised between a side wall 5 a and a median vertical plane ofthe tub 14 that contains the axis A. The vertical plane referred to isrepresented in FIGS. 5 and 9 by the dashed line designated by P1,whereas the aforesaid lateral area is designated by S in FIG. 9. In thecase exemplified, then, the heat exchangers 123 a and 123 b, with thecorresponding portion of the casing body 21 that houses them, are set inthe aforesaid lateral area S.

As may be appreciated, with such a positioning, one of the aforesaidlateral ends of each heat exchanger 123 a, 123 b is closer to thevertical plane P1, whereas the other lateral end of the same heatexchanger is closer to the aforesaid side wall 5 a of the cabinet 2.

Once again according to the invention, the heat exchanger or each heatexchanger that is located in the lateral area S here the heat exchangers123 a and 123 b—is set according to a plane of lie that is generallyinclined with respect to a horizontal plane (this horizontal plane maybe, for example, identified intuitively with the plane of lie of theupper wall 6 of the cabinet 2).

The above characteristic may be appreciated in particular in FIG. 9,where it may be noted how the heat exchanger 123 b (which, like the heatexchanger 123 a, is not visible, in so far as it occupies a positionbehind the heat exchanger 123 b), is set according to a plane oflie—represented schematically by the dashed line P2—that is inclinedwith respect to the horizontal. In the case exemplified, the planes P1and P2 form between them an angle of less than 90°. It will beappreciated that, with this positioning, a lateral end of the heatexchanger 123 a, 123 b (here the end closer to the vertical plane P1) islocated at a greater height than the other lateral end (here the endcloser to the corresponding side wall of the cabinet).

In various embodiments, like the one represented, the other heatexchanger of the heat-pump assembly—here represented by the heatexchanger 122 of the evaporator—is set at a rear-upper area of the tub14, this heat exchanger being also preferably set according to arespective plane of lie that is generally inclined. The inclined planeof lie of the bottom face of the heat exchanger 122 is representedschematically by the dashed line designated by P3 in FIG. 10. As may beappreciated, with this positioning, the inlet end of the heat exchanger122 is located higher up than the corresponding outlet end, one beingcloser to the upper wall and the other being closer to the rear wall ofthe cabinet.

In various embodiments, also the fan 24 is advantageously housed in thelateral area S inside the cabinet 2, above the tub 14, with the casingbody 21 that defines the housing for the impeller 124 and thecorresponding intake and delivery sections. In the case of theembodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1-10, the casing body 21 defines thehousing for the impeller 124 in a position generally intermediate withrespect to the heat exchanger 122 of the evaporator 22 and the heatexchanger 123 a of the condenser 23. Other choices of positioning forthe single fan are on the other hand possible, for example upstream ofthe condenser or downstream of the evaporator.

Lateral positioning of a substantial part of the heat-pump assembly 20also facilitates positioning of the hopper-shaped container 12 (as maybe appreciated from FIGS. 2 and 5), which can be set inside the cabinet2 in a lateral area opposite to the one in which the heat exchangers 123a and 123 b are located, i.e., in an area comprised between the sidewall 5 b of the cabinet and the median plane P1.

The heat-pump assembly moreover includes a system for filtering theforced air. In a preferred embodiment, such as for example the one sofar considered, a filter is set in the drying circuit upstream of theevaporator 22, for instance immediately downstream of the bellows-typetube 26.

FIGS. 11-14 refer to a variant embodiment according to which the heatexchanger—here designated by 123—of the condenser 23 and the heatexchanger 122 of the evaporator 22 can both be housed inside the cabinet2 in the aforesaid lateral area S, between the median plane P1 and acorresponding side wall 5 a of the cabinet, as is clearly visible inFIG. 14. In the example, both of the heat exchangers 122 and 123 are setaccording to one and the same plane of lie P2, illustrated in FIG. 14,but not excluded from the scope of the invention is the case of adifferent inclination for the two heat exchangers. As may be seen inFIGS. 11 and 12, in embodiments of this type the casing body 21prevalently extends in the longitudinal direction of the lateral area S,with the casing for the impeller 124 in an end region of the body 21that is generally opposite to the end region in which the mouth 27 islocated. In embodiments of this type, a duct, for example a hose, may beprovided for connection of the intake branch of the fan 24 to thecorresponding opening 14 a provided in the peripheral wall of the tub14. It will be appreciated on the other hand that, with simplevariations of the geometry of the casing body 21 and/or of thecorresponding tube for drawing off the air, in all the embodimentsprovided herein the air can be extracted in a single flow from the tub14 through an opening made in the rear wall of the tub itself, such as,for example, the opening designated by 14 c in FIG. 12 or 16.Furthermore, the fan could also be set, instead of in one of the two endregions of the body 21 (i.e., in the proximity of the front wall or inthe proximity of the rear wall of the cabinet), in an intermediateposition between the two heat exchangers 122 and 123.

In one embodiment of the type referred to in FIGS. 11-14, a filter ofthe drying circuit can be located immediately downstream of the openingfor intake of the air from the tub, for example the opening 14 a or theopening 14 c, or else immediately upstream of the fan, or else againimmediately downstream of the fan (namely, in an intermediate positionbetween the fan and to the evaporator).

In various embodiments, the body 20 illustrated in FIGS. 11-12 ispreferentially shaped in its lower part so as to facilitate off-flow ofthe water deriving from condensation of the humidity of the drying air,towards a suitable discharge connector (not shown).

According to further variant embodiments, the plane of lie of the heatexchanger or heat exchangers set in the aforesaid lateral area, insidethe cabinet 2, may be inclined in such a way that the inlet end and theoutlet end of a heat exchanger, or of each heat exchanger, are locatedat different heights.

An example of such an embodiment is exemplified in FIGS. 15-18,according to which the heat exchangers 122 and 123 are set according torespective inclined planes of lie, represented schematically by thedashed lines P4 and P5 in FIG. 17. Hence, in the example illustrated theplanes of lie of the heat exchangers 122 and 123 have a differentinclination, but not excluded from the scope of the invention is thecase of one and the same angle of the planes P4 and P5 inclined withrespect to the horizontal. Furthermore, even just one of the heatexchangers could be set according to an inclined plane of lie.

In embodiments of the type represented in FIGS. 15-18, the casing bodyof the assembly 20 may have a general configuration and arrangementsimilar to the one illustrated and described with reference to FIGS. 11and 12, with the fan in one of the two end regions of the casing body(i.e., in the proximity of the front wall or in the proximity of therear wall of the cabinet) or in an intermediate position between theheat exchangers 122 and 123.

As may be seen, in the embodiment of FIGS. 15-18, the plane of lie ofthe heat exchanger 122 and/or of the heat exchanger 123 is inclined withrespect to the horizontal both in a lateral direction (i.e., in thedirection between the median plane P1 and the side wall of the cabinet)and in the longitudinal direction (i.e., in the direction between therear wall and the front wall of the cabinet). Such an arrangement may beused also in the case of the embodiments described with reference toFIGS. 1-10. In other embodiments, the plane of lie of the heat exchangeror of each heat exchanger set in the lateral area S could be inclinedeven only in the longitudinal direction, i.e., in the direction of thedepth of the cabinet.

According to further embodiments, the planes of lie of two heatexchangers set in the lateral area S are opposed, i.e., set so as toform an angle with respect to one another.

Such an embodiment is, for example, illustrated in FIGS. 19-21, wherethe same numbers as those of the previous figures are used to designateelements that are technically equivalent to the ones already describedabove. In the embodiment of FIGS. 19-21, the planes of lie P4 and P5 ofthe heat exchangers 122 and 123 set in the area S are both inclined inthe longitudinal direction, with the inlet end of the heat exchanger 122lower than the corresponding outlet end and with the inlet end of theheat exchanger 123 higher than the corresponding outlet end. An oppositearrangement is also possible, i.e., with the inlet end of the heatexchanger 122 higher than the corresponding outlet end and with theinlet end of the heat exchanger 123 lower than the corresponding outletend.

As may be noted, the planes of inclination P4 and P5 are opposed to oneanother, i.e., they intersect one another, forming, in the exampleillustrated, an angle of approximately 90°. Merely by way of example,the planes P4 and P5 may have an inclination of 60° and 30°,respectively, it being, however, evident that these angles could bedifferent and preferably both comprised between 20° and 70°. Inprinciple, also in an embodiment of the same type as the one representedin FIGS. 19-21, the planes P4 and P5 may have the same inclination or aninclination different from one another.

Once again with reference to the example illustrated in FIGS. 19-21, theheat exchangers are set horizontally in a lateral direction (i.e., inthe direction between the median plane P1 and the side wall 5 a of thecabinet), but obviously this does not constitute a limitingcharacteristic of the embodiment considered.

The embodiments of FIGS. 15-18 and 19-21 may advantageously envisage anarrangement of at least one filter of the drying circuit similar to whathas already been explained with reference to the embodiment of FIGS.11-14.

Embodiments have previously been described in which the air is drawn offin a region corresponding to the peripheral wall or the rear wall of thetub. It will be appreciated, however, that the drying circuit could bereversed with respect to what has been exemplified, where the moist airis drawn off through the front opening of the tub and the dehumidifiedand heated air is re-introduced through one or more openings provided inthe peripheral wall and/or in the rear wall of the tub. For thesevariant embodiments, also the positions of the heat exchangers of theevaporator 122 and of the condenser 123 will be consequently reversedwith respect to what has been exemplified previously.

In the attached figures provided by way of example, the area S isdefined in the right-hand part of the cabinet 2, when this is observedfrom the front, but in other variant embodiments the lateral area forhousing at least one of the heat exchangers according to one of theinclined arrangements described could be in the left-hand part of thecabinet.

As is apparent from the figures, it is preferable that the exchanger orthe exchangers are set inclined in the lateral area S in such a way thatits/their lowermost corner is at a lower height than the uppermost pointof the tub, namely of the peripheral wall thereof, thereby reducing theoccupied space in height.

Moreover, as is apparent from the figures, it is preferable that theexchangers of the evaporator and of the condenser are distinct from eachother, i.e., that the outlet end of the former is set at a distance withrespect to the inlet end of the latter.

From the foregoing description, the characteristics of the presentinvention emerge clearly.

The arrangement proposed for the heat exchangers enables housing of theheat-pump assembly in cabinets of washer-dryer machines of substantiallystandardized dimensions, i.e., in cabinets of machines provided withmore traditional drying systems, which do not use a heat pump. Lateralpositioning of either the evaporator or the condenser or both in alateral area moreover enables a reduction of the risks of impact betweenthe tub and parts of the assembly, for example during spinning stepsperformed by the machine. Arrangement of the heat exchangers accordingto inclined planes enables concentration of a larger surface of heatexchange, as compared to a heat exchanger set horizontally, as well asfavouring off-flow of the condensation water from the body of the heatexchangers so that it can then be removed.

It is clear that numerous variants may be made by the person skilled inthe art to the washing and drying machine described by way of example,without thereby departing from the scope of the invention, as defined bythe annexed claims.

As mentioned previously, in possible variant embodiments the casing bodyof the heat-pump assembly can be fixed either to the cabinet of themachine or to the oscillating assembly. In a possible embodiment of thistype, for example, two different parts of the casing body are fixed oneto the cabinet and the other to the tub, with said parts that areconnected together in fluid communication via a flexible duct, forexample a bellows-type duct.

In one embodiment, which may be applied, for example, to the machines ofFIGS. 11-14, 15-18, and 19-21, a substantially rigid duct is fixed tothe rear wall 14 of the tub, the aforesaid rigid duct having one endconnected to the opening 14 c provided in said rear wall. The oppositeend of the duct is connected in fluid communication with the body thathouses at least one of the heat exchangers 122 and 123 via a flexibleduct, for example a bellows-type duct. With reference, for example, to abody 20 of the type visible in FIGS. 11 and 12, the aforesaid flexibleduct thus connects the aforesaid outlet end of the duct fixed to the tubwith the intake section of the fan 24 defined by the body 20.

1. A front-loading laundry machine, comprising: a cabinet having a frontwall, a rear wall, two side walls, and an upper wall, the cabinethousing an oscillating assembly that comprises a treatment tub having asubstantially horizontal longitudinal axis; a drying circuit comprisinga heat pump inside the cabinet, the heat pump including an evaporatordevice, a condenser device, a compressor, and a fan for forcing a flowof air through the evaporator device and the condenser device, whereinat least the evaporator device and the condenser device are housedinside the cabinet above the treatment tub, the evaporator device andthe condenser device each including a heat exchanger having a bodyconfigured for being traversed by the forced flow of air, the body ofeach heat exchanger having an inlet end and an outlet end opposite toone another, for the forced flow of air, and a first lateral end and asecond lateral end opposite to one another and set transversely withrespect to the inlet end and outlet ends; wherein the heat exchanger ofat least one of the evaporator device and the condenser device is setinside the cabinet in a lateral area that is comprised between a firstside wall of the cabinet and a median vertical plane of the treatmenttub that contains the corresponding longitudinal axis, with the firstlateral end of the heat exchanger that is closer to the aforesaid medianvertical plane and the second lateral end that is closer to theaforesaid first side wall and wherein the heat exchanger of the at leastone of the evaporator device and the condenser device is set in theaforesaid lateral area according to a plane of lie on an inclined withrespect to a horizontal plane.
 2. The machine according to claim 1,wherein the body of the heat exchanger of the at least one of theevaporator device and the condenser device is set in the aforesaidlateral area with the first lateral end that is at a greater height thanthe second lateral end.
 3. The machine according to claim 2, wherein thebody of the heat exchanger of the at least one of the evaporator deviceand the condenser device is set in the aforesaid lateral area with theinlet end and the outlet end at different heights.
 4. The machineaccording to any one of claim 3, wherein also the fan is set in theaforesaid lateral area, above the treatment tub.
 5. The machineaccording to any one of claim 1, wherein the heat exchanger of theevaporator device and the heat exchanger of the condenser device areboth housed in the aforesaid lateral area: according to one and the sameplane of lie and on an inclined with respect to the horizontal; or eachaccording to a respective plane of lie and on an inclined with respectto the horizontal.
 6. The machine according to any one of claim 5,wherein the body of the heat exchanger of the evaporator device and thebody of the heat exchanger of the condenser device are set in theaforesaid lateral area according to respective opposed planes of lie. 7.The machine according to claim 1, wherein: one of the heat exchanger ofthe evaporator device and the heat exchanger of the condenser device ishoused in the aforesaid lateral area, according to the aforesaidinclined plane of lie; and the other one of the heat exchanger of theevaporator device and the heat exchanger of the condenser device is setinside the cabinet at a rear-upper area of the treatment tub, accordingto a respective inclined plane of lie, with the inlet end and the outletend at different heights.
 8. The machine according to any one of claim7, further comprising a hollow casing body the heat exchangers of theevaporator device and of the condenser device.
 9. The machine accordingto claim 8, wherein the casing body extends longitudinally in theaforesaid lateral area.
 10. The machine according to claim 8, whereinthe casing body has a first portion that extends longitudinally in theaforesaid lateral area and a second portion, generally transverse to thefirst portion, which extends longitudinally in the aforesaid rear-upperarea.
 11. The machine according to claim 8, wherein the casing bodydefines a housing for an impeller of the fan.
 12. The machine accordingto claim 11, wherein the casing body has, in a first end region, a mouthgenerally facing a front opening of the treatment tub.
 13. The machineaccording to claim 12, wherein the casing body defines the housing forthe impeller of the fan in a second end region thereof, opposite to thecorresponding first end region.
 14. The machine according to claim 13,wherein the casing body defines the aforesaid housing for the impellerof the fan in a position generally intermediate to the heat exchanger ofthe evaporator device and the heat exchanger of the condenser device.15. The machine according to claim 8, wherein the casing body moreoverdefines a support for the compressor, the latter being preferablysupported behind a rear wall of the treatment tub.
 16. A laundrymachine, comprising: a cabinet defining an interior; a treatment tublocated within the interior and rotatable about an axis of rotation; adrying circuit comprising a heat pump including an evaporator device, acondenser device, a compressor, and a fan forcing a flow of air throughthe evaporator device and the condenser device; at least the evaporatordevice and the condenser device are located inside the cabinet above thetreatment tub, the evaporator device and the condenser device eachincluding a heat exchanger having a body configured for being traversedby the forced flow of air, the body of each heat exchanger having afirst lateral end and a second lateral end opposite to one another; theheat exchanger of at least one of the evaporator device and thecondenser device is located inside the cabinet in a lateral area that iscomprised between a first side wall of the cabinet and a median verticalplane of the treatment tub that contains the corresponding rotationalaxis, with the first lateral end of the heat exchanger that is closer tothe aforesaid median vertical plane and the second lateral end that iscloser to the aforesaid first side wall; and wherein the heat exchangerof the at least one of the evaporator device and the condenser device isset in the aforesaid lateral area according to a plane of lie on anincline with respect to a horizontal plane.